ISLAMABAD, Aug 4 Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry has called a meeting of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) for Saturday.

Although the announcement on Tuesday said the agenda of the meeting was to add a new clause to the code of conduct for superior court judges, legal analysts believe references against the judges hit by the Friday judgment of the Supreme Court would also be taken up.

The apex court had declared the appointments of Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar as chief justice and other judges under the Provisional Constitution Order as 'unconstitutional' and decided to refer their cases to the SJC.

“When it is said that the SJC may consider any other item with the permission of its chairman, then it could be any thing, including initiation of proceedings on the references before it against the judges,” senior counsel and former Balochistan High Court judge Tariq Mehmood told Dawn.

Attorney General Sardar Mohammad Latif Khan Khosa had said that the ministry of law was finalising references to be submitted before the SJC against Justice Faqir Muhammad Khokhar and Justice M. Javed Buttar of the Supreme Court for taking oath under the PCO.

Law Secretary Justice (retd) Riaz Kiani had told reporters that the Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court, Khawaja Sharif, had finalised references against 12 judges of the high court.

Since former chief justice Abdul Hameed Dogar, Justice Mohammad Nawaz Abbasi and Justice Syed Saeed Ashhad have already retired, the proceedings could only be initiated against the remaining two judges of the apex court unless they choose to resign.

The SJC meeting, to be presided over by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, will be attended by Supreme Court judges Justice Javed Iqbal and Justice Sardar Mohammad Raza Khan, Chief Justice of the Peshawar High Court Tariq Pervez and Chief Justice of the Lahore High Court Justice Khawaja Mohammad Sharif. Supreme Court registrar Dr Faqir Hussain will attend as secretary of the council.

According to the agenda, the meeting will discuss addition of a new clause to the code of conduct for superior court judges.

Unseating the PCO judges, the 14-judge SC bench had ordered addition of a new clause to the Code of Conduct in terms of Article 209(8) of the Constitution, commanding that no judge would offer any support in whatever manner to any unconstitutional functionary who acquired power. Any violation of the clause will be deemed to be a misconduct.

A senior counsel opposed the idea of sending the references to the SJC in haste, questioning faults on the part of judges who had taken oath under the PCO or on the recommendation of then chief justice Abdul Hameed Dogar.

“These judges were the victims of circumstances prevalent at the time when the emergency was proclaimed and the PCO decreed by General (retd) Pervez Musharraf. They were simply caught in a tussle,” he said.

The Supreme Court judgment had denuded the high courts of judges, he said, adding that in fact it was demeaning to some “very good judges”.